Cain Indicates He’s Not Aware That China Has Nuclear Weapons

By Ben Armbruster/Think Progress

PBS’ Judy Woodruff interviewed GOP presidential frontrunner Herman Cain on Monday night and wanted to know how the former pizza CEO would handle China should he occupy the Oval Office. Boosting the “us vs. them” mentality the GOP usually promotes when talking about China, Cain said “they’re a military threat,” particularly because — seeming to keep up his image that he doesn’t know much about foreign policy — they’re trying to get nuclear weapons:

WOODRUFF: Do you view China as a potential military threat to the United States?

CAIN: I do view China as a potential military threat to the United States.

WOODRUFF: And what could you do as president to head that off?

CAIN: My China strategy is quite simply outgrow China. … [W]e already have superiority in terms of our military capability, and I plan to get away from making cutting our defense a priority and make investing in our military capability a priority, going back to my statement: peace through strength and clarity. So yes they’re a military threat. They’ve indicated that they’re trying to develop nuclear capability and they want to develop more aircraft carriers like we have. So yes, we have to consider them a military threat.

Watch the clip (starting at 10:47):

Far from “trying to develop a nuclear capability,” as Cain suggests, and at risk of insulting anyone’s intelligence, the Chinese conducted their first nuclear weapons test in 1964 and reportedly possess around 250 nuclear weapons, including thermonuclear warheads and around 150 tactical nukes. (HT: Huffington Post)